MUSE/IQUE Presents THE UNAMERICANS: TALENTED AND TARGETED

MUSE/IQUE takes a look at The UnAmericans: Talented and Targeted in a moving and probing program conducted by Artistic and Music Director Rachael Worby, Wednesday, June 21 and Thursday, June 22 at 7:30pm at The Huntington Library in San Marino, and Sunday, June 25 at 7:30pm at the Skirball Cultural Center in West Los Angeles.
 
The UnAmericans: Talented and Targeted chronicles the effects the blacklist had on musicians, singers, and composers, and it explores the ways they overcame oppression through music.  The show is a tribute to the perseverance and power of artistic expression - and the belief that being American means being free to fully express ourselves.
 
In the mid-20th century, many of our great music and film makers were censored but they could not be silenced. This is the fascinating story of the infamous Hollywood blacklist of the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s and how music rose above scandalous propaganda to define the true American sound. In connection with the “Blacklist: The Hollywood Red Scare” exhibition, now presented at The Skirball Cultural Center, MUSE/IQUE delves into the intersection of politics, art, and social dynamics.

This concert includes Tony and GRAMMY® nominee Brandon Victor Dixon, studio vocalist Angie Fisher making her MUSE/IQUE debut, and The DC6 Singers Collective. Additionally, special guests Wendie Malick and Dan Lauria join us to bring life to the defining poetry and text of the era.
 
Dixon was Emmy nominated as Judas opposite John Legend in NBC’s live “Jesus Christ Superstar.” He starred in FOX’s “RENT,” Amazon’s “Modern Love”, and live on Broadway as Billy Flynn in Chicago and as Aaron Burr in Hamilton. Angie Fisher is an in-demand vocalist, having appeared with Michael Jackson, Kelly Clarkson, Chaka Khan, Mariah Carey, Michael Bublé, and Celine Dion, and on “Good Morning America,” “The View,” “American Idol” and “Saturday Night Live.”
 
This concert – The UnAmericans -- and the concurrent Skirball Cultural Center exhibit (through September 3) -- explores the history and impact of the Hollywood Red Scare and its contemporary implications for civil liberties, propaganda, and shifting definitions of American patriotism. It places a spotlight on the proceedings, investigations, motives, and choices of those caught in the crosshairs—including the many musicians, who suffered under and enforced the blacklist.
 
In October 1947, the House Un-American Activities Committee called on Hollywood figures to testify about allegations of Communist propaganda. Although the committee never found evidence of this, the entertainment industry responded by becoming the first mass employer to adopt a blacklist against employees whose political beliefs ran counter to prevailing ideals. The results – in this historically and thoughtfully curated song list are emotionally complex and compelling – demonstrate how politics can shape American culture. For information, please visit muse-ique.com.
 

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